Hi Moms and Dads,
We have a busy day ahead of us! In the morning half camp is going swimming with the horses while the other half practices their specialties! During rest hour we are busy writing our candle light and packing. In the afternoon, we switch! The other half of camp will be swimming with the horses, while the rest practices their specialties! A busy day for sure!
Pick up on Saturday - Please arrive between 9:30 and 10:00. In the main room of the lodge there will be a chart of who your camper is riding and where. You can go to their lesson and then follow them to their specialty. Please bring a picnic lunch to enjoy on the back lawn. Camp will supple drinks and dessert.
Best,
Becky
Friday, August 12, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Boy or should I say Girl, we have been busy. We have everyone on the right pony! Wha-Hoo! The photographers are here today, so the campers feel like the paparazzi is following them around! Oh to be a celebrity! The photographers are also coming back on Friday. We are going to go swimming with the horses on Friday and the photographer will be able to capture those images.
Yesterday afternoon we did swimming tests and small animals and last night we played the best game of all the games in all the land, Personal Scavenger Hunt! (Can you tell that I have a personal preference to this game?) The camp is divided into 4 teams and are asked questions about pop-culture, horses, the farm, books, songs and dances. One member of each team races to the table, slaps the table and is called on to answer the question. It is a ton of fun!
This morning the girls are doing lessons and this afternoon, they have a choice of trail rides, gambler’s choice, puissance, catch riding, or small animals and the pool. This evening we are having a Fashion Show! Tomorrow night we have the tri-fecta happening camping, ice-cream trough, and a Snipe Hunt! We are staying busy and having a ton of fun!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Friday afternoon August 5th
Dearest PF Parents and Farm Family,
Where on Earth does the time fly????!!!! How can this session already be at an end??? We would gladly keep these kids for the next two weeks and be happy as clams. What a great group of children…and I might mention, staff too. I feel so pleased that this session has gone so smoothly and with so many smiles on everyone’s faces. Everywhere I go, I see happiness!
The camp sure has been busy this past week. It is a great thing that they are all so easy to get along with and so responsive to staying organized & listening to directions because it has been a power packed week since Becky last emailed you! The “Battle of the Boy Bands”, Pony Farm’s version of the Olympic Games, has been on-going throughout the session, with everything from riding events, to stable management competitions, to a Hunter Pace, to the High Jump and Gambler’s Choice, to Counselor Quest and Lip Sync at night. These kids have not been idle! The final event is this afternoon and then the results will be announced at the Candlelight Ceremony tonight. The kids have really gotten into this and make it such fun for everyone involved.
In addition to all of these events, we had a clinic with Joe Lombard on Wednesday afternoon. This clinic was for both staff and campers. Last week, we had invited a clinician and had groups 3 through 6 have a lesson with her….so, this time around, Groups 1 and 2, or the Appaloosas and Morgans as the groups are named, had their chance to get a good solid lesson from Mr. Lombard, Master teacher, show judge and just plain great guy! They did a beautiful job. Mr. Lombard was most complimentary of our lesser experienced riders, most of whom were jumping!!!!
Thursday was the much awaited day of the Cheshire Fair. With several extra former campers and staff members joining in, the whole gang loaded up in a massive school bus and off they went to experience all the fun of a true country fair….including animals, shows, rides, cotton candy, games, exhibits, and all the junk food you can stomach and still ride the ‘rides’!!!! Everyone was great about checking in on time with the staff and sticking together for safety. It was a huge success. No one ended up with an upset stomach despite the gooey, fried and sugary food and the upside down, shake ‘em up carnival rides!!!!
Today was the last practice for the Parents’ Exhibition tomorrow, the last swim, and the writing of Candlelight readings that will happen at the closing ceremony tonight. It is a sad but still fun day to be at camp. I think everyone can’t believe that this session is nearly already over. Time has just flown by and lots of friendships made!!!
We look forward to greeting you all tomorrow at about 9:30AM. We will have the rings and teaching locations written down so you will know where to go to see your daughter(s) ride. The CITs will conduct the lesson. We encourage you to gather around the senior counselor and hear what your daughter has worked on during her stay. We will then switch up and move to the Specialties, which your kiddos have each chosen as their favorite special thing to demonstrate for you. We hope you will see great advancement in their riding, confidence and horsemanship!
We will end the morning with a picnic together on the front lawn. This is the time to really catch up with all the counselors and co-directors to see how your child did at camp or in lessons. We love ‘bragging’ to you about how well they did! Please bring enough lunch for your own family. We will provide drinks and desserts. The time wraps up about 1:30 or 2ish.
I sincerely hope that you have been pleased with all facets of Pony Farm this summer. It has been our pleasure and privilege to have your family as a part of our larger camp family. We look forward to hopefully have you rejoin us during the school year for a horse show, a clinic or a family weekend. We love seeing our camp families during the ‘off season’ instead of waiting a whole year until summer rolls around again!!!
I end, as I began, by thanking you for making Pony Farm a part of your child’s summer. We are proud of our 40 years of Pony Farm and look forward to many more to come!
Most warmly,
Boo and all the staff and board
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Wednesday, August 3rd
Hello Camp Families!
A few updates of Wednesday at PF…..
This morning the campers are learning specialties which they will show off to all of you this Saturday! Specialties the girls wanted to do include the Hunter Derby, Courses, and Pair Jumping. You will see them ride in their specialties after they ride in their lesson on Saturday, plan to arrive at 9:30 am with your picnic lunch!
This afternoon we are having our riding lessons. Today we have a special guest, Joe Lombard, who is doing a clinic with our staff and campers. We are excited as Mr. Lombard is a long time friend of PF and is a fabulous trainer.
Tonight is the GRAND FINALE for Battle of the Boy Bands (B.o.B.B.)! The finale is the traditional Lip-Sync contest. The boy bands will be dancing and (you guessed it) Lip-Syncing to a song of their choice by their boy band. Competition of B.o.B.B. has really heated up! After last night’s ice cream trough, boy bands rehearsed their Lip –Sync. The bands I saw had some impressive choreography happening.
Stay tuned for announcements of the winner of B.o.B.B!!!!!!
Have a great week!
Carrie
Monday, August 1, 2011
Friday July 29th, 2011
Dearest Camp Families and Friends of the Farm,
It is with a happy heart that I write this blog to you. I just finished greeting the kids as they came in from their morning ride, and then had the pleasure of having lunch with ‘your ladies’. I had a blast. They are so full of fun and talked non-stop about each thing they were doing, and all about their ponies. To the last girl, they are awesome kids. I love being with them and just being around their great energy.
The staff has also truly enjoyed them this week. The girls have worked with the teachers to find just the right match to ride, making good observations and never being whiney or demanding. They are having a terrific time with all the camp favorites during the evening activities, and then they are ready to slip off to bed without one counselor having to call out “It’s time to be quiet…..I have asked you four times already!” We wish we could keep them for the rest of the summer…or until it was time to start college, and then we would give them back to you!!!!
I know that Becky has blogged a couple of times so let me start in the middle of the week. The kids all had the right mounts by Wednesday so we were excited to offer them a special clinic with Anne Geoghehan, a well-known and respected teacher in Sherborn, Ma. Although I had never personally met her, her reputation as an amazing teacher, trainer, rider and competitor had preceded her arrival. She was everything her reputation said….and better. I just loved her and her teaching style. I felt I had a new “friend” in the horse world. We enjoyed her input so much that we have already planned to have a weekend clinic with her next spring where all the camp staff and CITS would come to learn how to teach even better, feel out the new horses, and generally learn how to teach a solid, effective group lesson. I don’t know who was more excited about this….me, Anne, the kids or the staff. It was a total success and a great way to get some more feedback on how we can make camp even better….As you know, we are always striving to do a better and better job for our families and horses!
After the more serious clinic, on Thursday, half the group did riding lessons in the morning and the other half went swimming with the horses, and then switched in the afternoon. We are so delighted by our new pond to swim the horses. It is about 3 miles down the road so it is easy to ride to while we take the rest of the kids in the car. This is a lovely big secluded pond that has recently been put into conservation easement so they welcome us to come. We are hoping to go camping there too next week with some of the kids who want to go. We would take about 6 larger ponies so everyone could ride one way or the other. These are the kinds of things that I love seeing the kids do because they are not possible to do in so many more suburban or city areas. From my childhood, I remember the all-day rides with a picnic lunch around my pony’s neck, the overnights with my pony and my friends with their ponies…all the ‘fun’ stuff with horses. I do hope we are creating life time memories and friendships for your girls.
Today, the girls did a whole day of Gymkhana Games, both morning and afternoon. These games are part of what they call “The Battle of the Boy Bands”. It is a week-long competition that includes about half riding activities and half evening events, all that accrue points to the winning team. It is make up of one rider from each riding group, so people gather points for their team regardless of level of riding skill. They all dress in the same color shirts and have their ‘logo’. For a farm tour today, I did have to ask that the two tour guides washed off their mustaches, the identifier for the “Boys to Men” group!!!! They are too funny.
The games included all the usual fun ones with things like Bobbing for Apples, Sit a Buck, Dizzy Bat, etc. The new one introduced that I had never heard of was “Pudgy Bunny” where they had to shove two big marshmallows in their mouth and then say “Pudgy Bunny” before they could weave back through the poles in a relay. Everyone came in dirty and wet from the apple bobbing, but happy from head to foot.
After lunch, they were going to do Gambler’s Choice and the High Jump. Again, these are events in the competition. The newer riders will do obstacles and the more experienced riders will have a course set up in other rings. The level of difficulty determines the number of points that can be earned. The riders have to gather as many points as they can in 3 minutes. It is exciting to watch for sure. Meanwhile, the other favorite event is the Puissance or High Jump. Two jumps are set with a correct distance to help the horse or pony get to the second jump in stride and in balance. The second jump gets higher and higher until either the rider, the teacher or the horse say “No thank you, that is too high”. It is such a fun and exciting event that it is really one of the camp favorites. I am sure they will choose it to show you for the Parents’ Exhibition on Saturday’s pick up.
Tomorrow’s big event if that they will be doing a Hunter Pace. They will ride a 5 mile loop and try to do it in the optimal time….not too fast to be scary and not too slow to be boring. They are again all dressing in the same color outfits to be identified as a team….Following the Hunter Pace, which is carefully supervised by staff of course, they will also be judged on cooling out their horses and correctly putting them away after a long ride. Following a late lunch, they will do the usual rest hour, and then have the final event which is Stablemanagement. They will be scored on how well they do their barn chores, including things like safety, team work, attention to detail and elbow grease….then the scores will all be added up and prizes given out for the week of the “Battle of the Boy Bands”…..So fun!
Sunday will offer sleeping in, organizing rooms and laundry, swimming, playing with the small animals, arts and crafts, special treats and snacks and….of course, preparing for the Talent show on Sunday night….a big event with much serious practice on the part of the girls. We often have up to 24 or 25 acts….It is quite a show of silliness, talent, fun, agility, music ability, and dancing. I love the Talent Shows as it always makes me realize just how many miles you as parents have driven to take lessons of one kind or another. These kids sure do have talent. It is fun to see it come out at the Talent Show.
Well…I have gone on too long. The staff always tells me that a blog should just be a few paragraphs, but it is such fun to let you know what is happening here at Pony Farm that I know I get carried away! I’m sorry!!!!!
I hope you are having a great week and are looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Aren’t you glad you do not have to get in the car AGAIN to come to Pony Farm. You, too, can kick up your heels and have some fun, knowing your kids are safe, happy, healthy and totally engaged in everything but the computer and face book! Yipee, thanks for supporting our efforts to get them unplugged. You and they are GREAT.
Stay well and know that we are thinking of you!
Warmly, Boo
PS…For those of you who have asked about Kris Young…yes, she does still work here but only for 25 hours a week instead of 80! She really loves her role at camp and loves doing some of the fun ‘non horsey’ stuff and not being here 24/7! In fact, she is just about to move to my former Cottage so she can still be a part of the farm family. Thought you would like to know!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Hello camp families!
Yesterdays’ activities earned many Boy Bands points! Last night’s rain cancelled our planned activity, but not our fun. We had Casino Night inside for some fun competition.
Today the girls ventured out on the Hunter Pace with their Boy Bands. The Hunter Pace is a timed trail ride in Boy Band groups. Staff is placed throughout the trail at checkpoints. The team with the quickest time, best attitude, and appropriate horses temperatures wins points for their Boy Band! The winner was The Jackson Five!!!
We celebrated Boo’s birthday after lunch. Our wonderful kitchen staff made a home-made ice cream cake for the celebration! It tasted even better than it looked, though I’m not sure how that was possible. Pin the tail on the donkey was entertaining for the participants and spectators! Rest hour was shortened due to party time (though we have received zero complaints from campers because of that!).
This afternoon we are doing catch riding, Western riding, gambler’s choice, playing with the minis, and swimming.
Battle of the Boy Bands won’t be earning anyone points this evening as the girls enjoy “Saturday Night at the Movies” here at the farm!
Have a great weekend!
Carrie
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